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Course information

Length

1 year full-time

Department

Art
Centre for Academic Language and Literacies

Course overview

This Pre-Masters programme is aimed at students who are considering undertaking an MA/MFA in Art or Curating but need a year to develop their practice as well as their written skills.

The Graduate Diploma in Art is an innovative twelve-month, studio-based programme designed for graduates who have experience in the creative professions, or those who have trained in other areas but wish to acquire skills within a fine art context. The programme offers a point of entry for students who intend to study at postgraduate level but do not possess the traditional academic qualifications, or those students who wish to further develop a body of work, or international students who seek to improve their English language. 

 

We welcome diverse creative practices that may involve developing drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, installation, performance, art writing, curation, textiles, fashion, photography, sound, digital media and video, as well as poetry, spoken word, history of art and theory. All students are allocated a dedicated studio space and specialist Art Practice Areas provide support for a wide variety of processes that complement and extend traditional disciplines. You will have a personal tutor who will provide academic support and assistance in researching and considering the MA degree options for your future studies.

 

The student-centred approach of the Graduate Diploma in Art scaffolds you to work independently on top of scheduled sessions, where you will use a range of additional resources including the Art Practice Areas and the Goldsmiths Library. 

 

The Graduate Diploma in Art offers new access routes to all MA/MFA programmes in the Department of Art at Goldsmiths: 

Successful completion of the Graduate Diploma in Art will guarantee you entry into one of these four Goldsmiths postgraduate programmes. Throughout the year there is an opportunity to study alongside the postgraduate students and spend time within their studio, seminar and critical studies spaces. This process will integrate you into the studio-based postgraduate community in the Department of Art. The programme will help you develop a critical understanding of your own practice, and the contemporary artistic, academic, social, and political contexts in which that practice occurs.

 

The programme’s location on the main Goldsmiths campus in South East London, with proximity to some of the world’s leading artistic and scientific institutions, provides an opportunity to explore the city and use London as a resource. The Graduate Diploma in Art provides a rich environment for you to learn skills, acquire knowledge and build networks that will be essential to propelling your professional artistic practice through to MA/MFA and beyond.

 

Students are supported by the Programme Leader Elle Reynolds, Senior Tutor Dr. Joseph Noonan- Ganley and as well as academic visitors and artist practitioners in the field. We have an exciting external programme, which includes ongoing collaborations with curators, galleries and performance spaces. The programme teaches professional skills through visits, offsite exhibitions, talks and workshops led by practitioners that provide real-world insights into the kinds of innovations, negotiations and knowledge necessary to realising a successful practice. Established visiting artists and curators include - Tyler Coburn, Kirsten Cooke, Elsa James, Gary Farrelly, Onyeka Igwe, Emma Edmondson, Warren Harper, Beny Wagner, and Lu Williams. Studio practice is taught through an intensive programme of individual tutorials, group critiques and study visits. The Graduate Diploma in Art shares a specialised programme of critical studies lectures and seminars that include access to the MFA lecture programme.

 

Attend one of our Open Days or contact the department with the details below if you would like to discuss your application.

 

Image by Sakshi Chokhani and Kirsten Cooke.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Elle Reynolds or Dr Joseph Noonan-Ganley.

What you'll study

Overview

You'll complete a total of four modules - three compulsory and one optional module. Please select the module names below to read their full description.

Compulsory modules

You'll take the following compulsory modules:

Module title Credits
Studio Practice

Studio Practice

45 credits

The studio practice element of the programme provides you with a context in which artistic and/or curatorial practices can develop in a studio-based critical environment. You'll spend more than 50% of your time working in your studios and in the Art Practice Areas exhibitions spaces we provide, developing your own individual practice.  

Strong emphasis is placed on developing an understanding of the interrelationship between theory and practice in artistic and curatorial production, through the application of critical thinking, writing and research methods to practice. This is shared activity from the outset; the studio environment encourages shared learning and provides opportunities for informal peer discussion and evaluation. At Goldsmiths we insist on studio provision for our practice-based students in order to promote this community of learning. This will module will include an oral examination (viva) and an exhibition in the summer graduate show.

 45 credits
Critical Studies

Critical Studies

45 credits

The Critical Studies module is designed to familiarise you with the intellectual context of contemporary art, in order to support your practical work making art or exhibitions. You can expect to engage and extend your powers of critical reflection, and to gain the intellectual tools to discuss, write about, analyse and evaluate contemporary art, including your own. Attendance at critical studies lectures and seminars and undertaking gallery visits form part of this module which culminates in a 2,500 word research essay.

 45 credits
Collaborative Practice

Collaborative Practice

15 credits

In this module, you'll develop a collaborative practice supported through group tutorials. A record of text, visual, and sound documentation of the collaboration should be made. The collaborative practice is student-led, and supported through workshops, tutorials and group critiques.

 15 credits

Optional modules

You'll then choose between the two optional modules. Students who need further development of their English language skills should take Academic Listening and Speaking.

Module title Credits
Artists’ Text Portfolio

Artists’ Text Portfolio

15 credits

Workshops and talks support the writing of a series of key artistic texts to develop the skills necessary to present your work to others in a variety of contexts. The artists’ text portfolio comprises artist statements, exhibition reviews, event scores, artist publications, site writing. You'll develop texts in response to seminars, lectures, visits, guest artists, tutorials and group critiques.

 15 credits
or
Academic Listening and Speaking

Academic Listening and Speaking

15 credits

The Goldsmiths specialist Centre for Academic Language and Literacies (CALL) deliver our English as an Additional Language weekly classes for the international and EU GDA students who require this module. The Academic Language Development courses focus on the style, language and grammar of English academic practices and can support you to produce the specific coursework required by your programme, and in particular, written assignments. Additional Academic Writing workshops are offered by CALL and can be used to support particular projects or module assignments.

 15 credits

Assessment

Continuous assessment includes regular seminar presentations and researched essays. There will also be written, listening and oral examinations.

Download the programme specification.

Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.

Between 2020 and 2022 we needed to make some changes to how programmes were delivered due to Covid-19 restrictions. For more information about past programme changes please visit our programme changes information page.

Entry requirements

You should normally be expected to meet any particular entry requirements of the degree you intend to progress onto.

International qualifications

We also accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 6.0 with a 6.0 in writing and no element lower than 5.5 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for degree-level study.

Selection process

Admission to this programme is by submissions of electronic portfolio and interview. Occasionally, we'll make candidates an offer of a place on the basis of their application and qualifications alone.

Fees & funding

Annual tuition fees

These are the fees for students starting their programme in the 2023/2024 academic year.

  • Home - full-time: £9723
  • International - full-time: £26100

Bursaries

 

We regularly have bursaries that assist in supporting students, details of these are announced yearly in the Autumn term after enrolment. You can also browse our Scholarships finder to see what funding you may be eligible for

Additional costs

In addition to your tuition fees, you'll be responsible for any additional costs associated with your course, such as buying stationery and paying for photocopying. You can find out more about what you need to budget for on our study costs page.

There may also be specific additional costs associated with your programme. This can include things like paying for field trips or specialist materials for your assignments. Please check the programme specification for more information.

How to apply

You apply directly to Goldsmiths using our online application system. 

Before submitting your application you’ll need to have:

  • Details of your education history, including the dates of all exams/assessments
  • The email address of your referee who we can request a reference from, or alternatively an electronic copy of your academic reference
  • A personal statement – this can either be uploaded as a Word Document or PDF, or completed online. (See our guidance on writing a postgraduate statement).
  • A digital portfolio
  • If available, an electronic copy of your educational transcript (this is particularly important if you have studied outside of the UK, but isn’t mandatory)

You'll be able to save your progress at any point and return to your application by logging in using your username/email and password.

When to apply

We accept applications from October for students wanting to start the following September. We encourage applications for our 24 January and 25 April review points, but late applications are also welcome up to September.

We encourage you to complete your application as early as possible, even if you haven't finished your current programme of study. It's very common to be offered a place that is conditional on you achieving a particular qualification. 

Late applications will only be considered if there are spaces available.

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